


The Truth Comes Out

by beargirl1393



Series: Dworin Week 2k16 [3]
Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Dworin Week, Fights, Gen, M/M, Making Up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-20
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-07-25 15:35:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7538317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beargirl1393/pseuds/beargirl1393
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A continuation of Secrets and Lies, where Thorin confronts Dwalin about keeping secrets.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Truth Comes Out

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Day 3 of Dworin Week, which is Conflict and Reconciliation. It's a continuation for the first fic I wrote for Dworin Week, so it'd probably make more sense if you read that one first.

Dwalin was in the training area, barking out orders to the dwarves he was training. He wouldn’t let them slack off, he was going to make sure that they were whipped into shape no matter what. Erebor had once had a fine army, and he was going to make sure that it was once again the pride of the North. Thorin had given him the command of the army for that reason, his battle skill and his skill at training others, and he wasn’t going to let his king, his intended, down now.

He was already planning what he would do after he was finished training for the day (and after he finished signing all the blasted parchments Balin thought was necessary for him to do his job), he would see if Thorin would want to get food from the kitchens and go for a ride. Get out of the mountain, away from their responsibilities, for a time. He loved the mountain, it was his home, but sometimes he did miss falling asleep under the stars as he had on the road. Having a soft bed and a place to go out of the rain more than made up for that, but there was no harm spending a night reliving it.

So, he was understandably startled when the door to the training hall banged open, causing every head in the room to turn to the door. Most of the dwarves and dwarrowdams assembled hastily bowed as soon as they saw Thorin, but Dwalin was focused on his expression. Hurt, anger, and maybe a bit of confusion. What had happened since he left this morning? Thorin had been fine then, groaning about the morning audiences and the amount of documents Balin would expect him to sign. That had played into Dwalin’s decision to plan dinner outside, to give them both a chance to stretch their legs.

Now, he barked a few more orders for his recruits before following after Thorin as the other dwarrow headed into his office. It was small and Spartan, with a desk and two chairs, one for him to sit in and one for any visitors. There was a jug that he would fill with cool water, to drink while he was doing paperwork, and a small goblet beside it for the same purpose. The only personal touch was a sketch of the two of them that Ori had given him, sitting in a frame in pride of place on his desk. Thorin stared at it now as if he had never seen it before.

“Why did you never tell me that you have a child?” Thorin asked softly, before Dwalin could think of a way to ask what was going on, because Thorin’s behavior was worrying him. The question made him pause, however.

“Why do you think-“ was all the farther he’d gotten before Thorin cut him off. Loudly.

“Nyr is here!” Thorin snapped, his voice rising with every word until he was shouting. “A dwarrowdam that I have never met asked for an audience with me because she did not know where in Erebor to find you. And I had to learn from this stranger that you had lied to me! That you kept your child from me!”

Dwalin was stunned, he hadn’t known that Nyr would be here so soon. He’d written to her as soon as things were settled after the battle and it was clear Thorin would pull through. He hadn’t heard anything since, however, so he didn’t tell Thorin anything about them yet. He had been waiting for confirmation before broaching the subject. Now, apparently, the decision had been taken from him.

“Thorin, I did plan to tell you-” Dwalin started, before Thorin cut him off again.

“Fifteen years, Dwalin!” Thorin said, his voice still too loud, echoing around the room. “For fifteen years you kept this secret, never telling me that you had the child you longed for. Fifteen years! Even in the five years we have been together, you never said one word about Nyrin.” Nyr, he didn’t mind, she clearly was nothing more than a friend now and Dwalin wasn’t required to introduce him to all of his friends, but his daughter. “Why did you lie to me? Why did you keep her from me? Did you distrust me so that you would have to lie and keep your only child hidden away like she was-”

This time, Dwalin was the one who cut Thorin off. “It had nothing to do with a lack of trust,” Dwalin said, with the same patience that Thorin remembered from when the other dwarrow gave Fíli and Kíli lessons in swordsmanship and archery as dwarflings. “I trust you with my life, Thorin, or else I would have never followed you on the mad quest that led to this. Nor was it shame, as I have nothing to be ashamed of.”

“Then why did you hide her, Dwalin?” Thorin asked, his tone noticeably softer now. He couldn’t see why Dwalin would keep the child hidden. She was adorable, and seemed like a good dwarfling. Why would he keep her hidden?

“Because I did not want you to feel guilty,” Dwalin said simply, causing Thorin to blink. “I know you, Thorin. If you knew I had a child, one that I could not keep with me because of how often I traveled, you would feel guilt that I could not raise her, as in Erebor I would not have this problem. You carried so much guilt, so much impotent anger for our circumstances, that I was loathe to add to it. I knew that, in time, she would stay with me permanently, and until then I made do with visits as often as I was able, bringing her small trinkets found on my journeys.”

“How did you know that we would reclaim Erebor?” Thorin asked softly. That was the heart of the matter, as Dwalin was right. If he had known of Nyrin, he would have felt unaccountably guilty that Dwalin had been unable to take her in, and it was that guilt that had helped to fuel Thorin’s anger earlier.

“Because I know you, Thorin, and I know that you are too stubborn to give up until you accomplish any goals you set,” Dwalin replied, smiling. “You always do, Thorin, and you always will.” He paused for a moment before adding, “I did plan to tell you, Thorin. As soon as I knew that they were coming, I planned to tell you everything.”

“They apparently beat their letter here,” Thorin pointed out, chuckling softly. “So your plan was rather ineffective.”

“Well, no plan is perfect, including ones to go up against dragons,” Dwalin said dryly, prompting a proper laugh from Thorin, Dwalin joining in a moment later. “Let me dismiss the recruits, they’ll be grateful to be done for the day, and we’ll go see Nyrin so I can introduce you properly.”

“I do think our first meeting leaves something to be desired,” Thorin replied, and Dwalin’s laughter followed him out of the door, echoing off of the stone and causing Thorin to smile.

He just hoped that Dwalin’s dwarfling was less mischievous than his own nephews were, or Erebor would be in serious trouble.


End file.
